Bless The Broken Road
by Chelsea Oz
Summary: A three-parter. An AU to Mike and Carol's wedding day. This is told in Carol's POV and it starts with her thoughts the night before, the day of, and the night after. Already rated a T because there is a honeymoon involved. I hope you enjoy! Complete!
1. Chapter 1

My first love had died. He was in a car crash when Cindy was a baby. I will never forget trying to rock her to sleep while she was wailing at the top of her lungs. A breaking news report flashed across the screen with the news of a highway pile-up with one man already pronounced dead. I didn't think anything of it other than the usual, "How terrible." Then came the phone call I never thought I would get. It was my turn to cry as my baby girl had soothed herself to sleep. That's all I remember of that day; I was so in a daze, my survival mode set in a gear so hard that I wasn't even in my own head. I couldn't even tell you about his funeral except that Mike and Mary Brady stopped by.

Mary Brady was a co-worker of mine. We worked as secretaries for the same company. She was full-time; I was part-time. I remember how she came to greet in me in the mourning line and gave her condolences to me.

"I can't imagine what you're going through," she quietly told me at the funeral reception.

"I hope you never have to," I remember looking at Mike when I said that.

"I've been praying every night that someone watches over Mike if anything should happen to me."

"I don't think anything bad's going to happen."

"Oh, listen to me. I'm so sorry, hon," she then said wrapping her arms around me.

"You're okay, Mary," I told her, hugging her back. It would be one of the last times I would hug her. She died in her sleep just a few months later. Just like that, she was gone and everytime I thought about what she had said to me at the funeral reception, I would get the chills. It was almost like she knew and just had to tell somebody. I felt horrible for Mike and their three sons. I have three girls of my own and our grieving process was something that was forever unfolding. They were in for a long ride and I knew it.

Our love story started with a simple dinner at a restaurant. The next time I invited him over to our house for dinner. I will never forget the way he interacted so dearly with my girls. They loved him right off the bat. Baby Cindy was so comfortable with him that she let him rock her to sleep. I marveled at that; Cindy always fussed whenever her father tried to rock her to sleep. I always knew she loved her father very much but she was always peculiar about bedtime.

The next time was over at his house. I met Alice and thought she was one of the most adorable people I had ever met. She was so funny and so charming, who wouldn't love her? Then I met his boys and my heart melted. I had always wanted a son of my own and the little boys in front of me were so precious, I would have adopted them right there. Bobby and Peter were the most loving little boys and were taking turns crawling in my lap throughout the night. Greg liked me okay, but he was more on the independent side. He did hug me goodbye when I left.

That was the way our friendship began. Of course that turned into a courtship and then an engagement. We had just started having both of our families over for dinner at each other's houses when Mike told me he had dropped something. Then he breezed over to my side of his dining room table and pulled out a box. He then opened it up and showed me this beautiful diamond ring. I began to cry as I said, "Yes" and he slipped the ring on my finger. The kids cried with happiness as we kissed each other. Our dessert that evening was a big sheet cake made by Alice that said, "She said 'Yes!'" written on it.

That was a year ago. Now here I am in my old bedroom at my parent's house waiting for my new life to begin...


	2. Bride of Gold

The day that I thought would never arrive had definitely arrived. I ought to know, I've been counting down the hours all night. I haven't been this nervous since, well, my first wedding. I just can't seem to calm myself down. This wedding to Mike is not nearly the ordeal that my first was. I spent a small fortune on just my wedding dress alone last time. It was a beauty; I was Princess Grace before Grace Kelly became her. Now I look at my gold dress that is a fraction of my first dress' cost and hope I make just as a good impression. I have chosen not to wear white again because I thought it would be in bad taste. I had already had three daughters and me and Mike both know we were not chaste during our five year courtship. Why should we have been? We were adults who were connected through our children and our grief. Rules don't apply to a relationship when both people start out broken.

That revelation was now hitting me. Yes, I was a broken person who met another broken person and we healed each other. We helped each other get where we are today and nothing can take that away from us. I don't care if it all goes wrong; I don't care if the kids get wild, I don't care if the wedding cake collapses or if I flub my vows. This day was going to be perfect with all the imperfections it may have, including the bride and the groom.

I can get out of bed now. I can now go downstairs and get my girls ready for this day. Bless my three little darlings because they know how hard our journies were. I shouldn't compare theirs with mine, though; they had lost their father and he was my husband. Pain is pain however.

"How happy are you three today?"

"Happy!" Cindy exclaims.

"Overjoyed!" Jan squeals.

"Estatic!" Marcia bursts out.

I just laugh and pull my daughter to me in a group hug. I think my own happiness may be rubbing off on them. When mama's happy, everybody's happy! We laugh all the way through our hair, makeup and dressing. It really felt like I had my three best friends in there with me.

"Hey, honey," my father says knocking. "Can I come in?"

"Yes," I say as the girls help me with my veil, my finishing touch.

He walks in and his jaw drops. I recognize that look; it was the same he gave to me when I first had gotten married. Tears well up in my eyes because I realize how awestruck he must be knowing that love found his daughter not once but twice. I go to him and hug him. He hugs me back and shoos the girls out of the room.

"Mike's here," he says, giving my cheek a kiss. "He's waiting for you."

"Thank you, daddy," I say, kissing him back. I always considered myself a daddy's girl. I was relieved when he understood why I didn't want him walking me down the aisle. He completely thought it made sense that Jan and Marcia would be walking me down the aisle this time. I am so lucky to have him and Mom. The butterflies come fluttering back when I hear the music playing outside.

"Nowhere to run and nowhere to hide now," dad jokes, taking my hand in his.

"I guess you're right," I say laughing.

It was a long walk down the stairs of my parent's house and then to the backyard. Through the backdoor I can see Cindy walking perfectly down the aisle while my heart swells with pride. I see the boys standing there so handsome in their suits and I can't believe I will soon have the honor of being their second mom. I can't really see Mike until I begin my walk down the aisle with Jan and Marcia by my side. He is so handsome he is taking my breath away. Then I look at the minister and I just pray that words will come out of my mouth to say my vows.

I do, in more ways than one. Everything that I thought I would never do again had been done again. Commiting to vows of love, honor, and cherish to my groom until death do me part. The sensation of him putting a ring on my finger. The excitement I felt when he finally kissed me. The tears I cried when me and Mike had our first dance. The delicious taste of white cake with vanilla icing in my mouth. The laughter that burst out of me when the bouquet I tossed was caught (by Alice) and the garter was ripped off my leg. For the record, I think that butcher friend of Mike's and Alice could really hit it off!

It really had been a magical day and I couldn't have hoped for better. Mike married me already and now here we are, waving our wedding guests, parents and children goodbye...


	3. Surf and Turf

I was exhausted when we finally got to our hotel. All the anticipation, happiness, and flat out partying had taken their toll. I was so overcome with emotion that I hopped into the shower just to have time to cry. If Mike had asked me about my red eyes I could have told him that I got a little shampoo in them. It could have been a fail-safe plan had he not joined me. He snuck up behind me and grabbed my butt. I turned around, startled. He knew he scared me because then he pulled me into a hug.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart," he said.

"You're okay, Mike. You just caught me by surprise."

"Well, that's what I was trying to do," he says as he lets go of me and begins to fiddle with the shower knob, turning it off in the process.

"Hey, what are you doing?" I shrieked. "I'm cold."

"You won't be cold for long," he said as I realized he had turned my shower into a bath. He took the shampoo I was using and poured some into the water for makeshift bath bubbles. I touch my hair and realized he never even gave me a chance to rinse my hair out. Why did everything feel so wrong right now? I couldn't have asked for a more enjoyable wedding day and here I am on my honeymoon, a complete basket case.

"What's the matter, honey?" He finally asked.

"I don't know," I confessed. I really didn't know what to tell him. He wrapped me in his arms again. I feel so ashamed that I bury my face in his chest and fling my arms around his neck. That was when I felt him lift me up and by instinct I wrapped my legs around him. As vulnerable as I felt, I completely turned myself over to him. I've always felt safe with Mike so it was only natural for me to let things happen. He carefully lowers himself into the tub with me still on him. Between Mike's body heat and the warmth of the water, I felt comforted. I rested my head back on Mike's chest and gave him a smile.

"Hi, sweetheart," he said, gently washing away the shampoo still in my hair.

"Hi," I said as I began to rub his belly.

"Are you cold?"

"Just the opposite."

"Too hot?"

"Nope," I say, rubbing myself up against him. "I'm just right."

"I knew that already," Mike says, rubbing up against me now. "That's why I married you."

"Best thing that ever happened to me," I say, gasping at the fact he had already found his way into me.

"Ditto, my dear," he says, getting deeper and deeper. I can only close my eyes and enjoy this longing. Just when I thought he reached my deep end, I let out what I can only call a lion's roar. I think that scared Mike because he bolted up out of the tub. I could only laugh.

"I have never made a woman do that. Not even Mary," he confessed.

"I've never let out like that. Not even John," I confessed.

"The best is yet to come," he said getting up out of the tub.

"Where are you going?"

"To bed."

"Now?"

"Haven't you ever heard of surf and turf?" He asked with a devil's grin. "Meet you in there."

"Mike Brady," I say, racing him to the bed. What a lucky woman I am to say his name for the rest of my life. It was my turn to surprise him. I jump on his back and tackle him down on the bed. We laughed as we both fell down onto the fluffy mattress. I was still wet and naked and neither of us really cared. I decided to make the bed my territory and make Mike make a roar. I told him I would do whatever he wanted me to do and I did. I left no stone unturned and did my very best to please him.

"You're too good to me," he would tell me.

"My pleasure," I said as I we went into each other for the last time. I was physically exhausted now and really felt I couldn't take one more ounce of affection. Not another hug, kiss, thrust, nothing. We just looked into each other's eyes, exchanged "I love you's", and fell asleep. I could stay this way forever.


End file.
